Canarrow: Fall Of The Black Canary
by changingdestiny40
Summary: This is a slight rewrite of Laurel's death scene at the end of 4x18, Canarrow style, and eliminates the blessing of Olicity on her deathbed.


**This fic is a slight rewrite of Laurel's hospital/death scene. In it, Sara has NOT joined the Legends and instead remained in Star City with her family and the team. She and Oliver have also rekindled their romance and are engaged to be married, and Olicity never happened. It will also rectify Sara and Quentin not being there to give Laurel a final goodbye. Finally, instead of giving Olicity her blessing, something which infuriated multiple fans (though I think that was Katie Cassidy's idea, not Guggenheim's), she'll instead give Canarrow her blessing instead.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own "Arrow" or its characters. They and any dialog you might recognize are the property of DC, Warner Brothers, the CW, and its showrunners.**

Laurel lay in her hospital bed, recovering from surgery, as all of her loved ones were gathered around her. They consisted of Oliver, her sister Sara who was also Oliver's fiancé, something Laurel was very pleased about, her dad Quentin, Thea, Diggle, and Felicity.

Before Laurel could address her friends and her father, Sara quickly moved closer and pulled her sister into her arms, hugging her tightly with tears falling from her eyes.

"Oh my gosh Laurel, are you okay?", she asked her with worry in her voice after releasing her.

"Don't worry, I'm okay", Laurel responded with a tired smile, doing her best to calm her sister.

"I'm so glad to hear that. I don't know what I'd do if anything were to happen to you", Sara said to her, trying to hold back her tears and wiping away the ones that made it through. She then moved a short distance away from Laurel and Quentin was next to approach her, taking her hand in his own.

"Hey baby girl, how's it going?", he gently asked her, his eyes filled with pain at seeing her like this and knowing that it was his fault.

"It's going well dad. I just need to rest for a bit but I'm alright", Laurel answered, trying to reassure him. Quentin then started crying and shaking his head.

"I'm so sorry Laurel, honey. I should've never gotten on that stand and testified against that monster…", he began when his daughter cut him off.

"Don't you dare say that this is your fault dad", Laurel said to him with a hint of anger in her voice. "Don't you dare even think like that. You took the stand because you believed it was the right thing to do and I'm very proud of you. This isn't anyone's fault except for the one man who deserves to be blamed for this, and everyone in this room knows who that man is. Please dad, promise me you won't blame yourself for this", she begged him, hoping he would take her words to heart.

"She's right dad. You shouldn't blame yourself for this", Sara added, fully agreeing with her sister. "What happened to Laurel is Darhk's fault and I promise you that he's going to pay for this", she vowed.

"Quentin didn't completely agree with what his daughters were saying to him, even though he knew in his heart that they spoke the truth, but decided to let the matter drop.

"I'm just glad you're okay sweetheart", he said to Laurel then moved away after giving her hand a quick squeeze. "You just go ahead and relax now alright?"

"Okay dad", she responded to him, after which he left the room to freshen up in the bathroom, leaving only Sara, Oliver, Thea, Diggle, and Felicity. Felicity and Thea were the next of her loved ones to approach her bed with smiles on their faces.

"Hi", Laurel addressed each of them with a tired smile.

"Hey yourself", Thea responded with relief, doing her best keep a hold of her emotions as her eyes glistened with unshed tears.

"Did Darhk…?", Laurel started to ask when Felicity interrupted her.

"Don't worry about him, just worry about getting better okay?", she said to Laurel, wanting her friend to take it easy.

"This is not exactly how I wanted my last night to go", Laurel told her friends and teammates, and meaning it. If she was planning on retiring from vigilante business, she'd rather not have being laid up in a hospital bed as part of that plan.

"What are you talking about?", Diggle asked her, wondering what she meant.

"It's a long story. I was going to give up on being the Black Canary…"

"What?!", Sara exclaimed in shock, her mouth open and her eyes wide, not expecting her sister to ever want to retire. Laurel loved being the Black Canary and this piece of news really came out of left field for Sara. "Why would you ever want to give that up? You love that life and I love you being out there with me, Ollie, and our friends. Why would you choose to suddenly leave it behind?"

"It's a long story. Basically, Ruve offered me the position of district attorney and I considered accepting so that I could use my new position to keep an eye on her and hopefully glean some more information for our war against her husband", Laurel explained to her sister and her teammates. "However, I realized that I didn't know how I could. Because going out there, and fighting alongside you guys, that's what makes me feel alive inside." Once she finished saying those words, she looked at each of the people surrounding her and, feeling a great amount of affection surge inside of her for each of them, added, "I love you guys so much", touched that they cared deeply for her and grateful for all the support they showed her since joining their team.

Everyone smiled at her in response, feeling the warmth of her words which caused them to nearly start crying again.

"We love you", Felicity said to her in response, words which both Thea and Diggle seconded. The three of them then decided to wait outside the room so that Laurel could have her rest, leaving only Sara and Oliver still inside with her.

"You both should probably get some rest too", Laurel said to them, not wanting them to lose their need for sleep on her account.

"No chance", Oliver replied, having no intention of leaving her alone. "I'm gonna stay right here."

"I'm not leaving you either big sis. You need us and therefore you're stuck with us", Sara added playfully but seriously and meaning it, fully of the same mind as her fiancé.

Laurel smiled at the two of them, then thinking of something she wanted to show to them, asked for them to reach into her left pouch and to bring it to her. Oliver and Sara agreed to do so and retrieved what turned out to be a picture of Laurel when she was much younger, it being the very same picture Oliver took with him when he got onboard the _Gambit_ and carried with him during his five years away. Seeing that picture brought a surge of memories and emotions to him and Sara, making them both remember what they and Laurel had been like so long ago, which was young, carefree, innocent, and free of the burdens of the world that now rested on their shoulders today. It was so interesting how circumstances could transform a person as the years went by and the three of them, in that moment, wished they were still living during the simpler times of the past.

"You kept this?", Oliver asked Laurel in surprise and wonder while placing the picture into her hand. She took it and stared at it, reminiscing on happier days when all she had to worry about was what career she'd choose and stuff like that.

"It's a little reminder of when things were simpler", she answered him, then after pausing for a moment, looked up at him and added, "Not just for me but for us, when we were together. The way we used to be so long ago". She then turned her attention to her sister and reached for her hand while using her other hand to reach out for Oliver's hand. Oliver and Sara reciprocated and with matching smiles gladly took a hold of her hands, after which, to their surprise, Laurel took their hands, clasped them together, and used her own hand to wrap around their hands, keeping them joined, then looked up at both of them with a loving smile.

"I'm so happy that the two of you are back together. You are truly a wonderful match for each other and I'm grateful that the two of you found your way back to each other. I even thought of the perfect ship name for you."

Oliver and Sara's eyebrows widened at that, surprised Laurel had a ship name for them.

"What is the ship name you chose for us?", Sara asked her sister, very curious as to what it could possibly be. Laurel smiled, then answered and said, "the ship name I came up with is Canarrow, you being the White Canary and Oliver being the Green Arrow."

Oliver and Sara smiled brightly at the name Laurel chose for them.

"That's actually a very good ship name for us. Thank you for picking it", Oliver said in response.

"Yeah Laurel, it really fits us", added Sara, she and Oliver loving the nickname.

"I thought it would, and I'm very glad you guys like it", Laurel said to them, pleased that they both approved. "I just want the two of you to be happy together and to cherish every moment you have with each other. I do believe in my heart that you are the loves of each others lives and that the two of you have a bright future together. I do however want you Oliver to know that while I accept and am happy that Sara is the love of your life, for me you will always be the love of my life, you being my first love and all." Following the utterance of those words, Laurel looked towards Sara, feeling slightly nervous of her reaction to what she just told Oliver. Sara, seeing her sister's worry, quickly extracted her hand from Oliver's and squeezed Laurel's hand.

"It's okay Laurel. I do understand what you're feeling and have no doubt that if it were me, I would feel the same way about my own first love", she said to her, reassuring her that it was alright. Laurel squeezed her sister's hand in return, grateful she understood, and then decided to explain why she said what she said to Oliver.

"The thing is, tonight it was just a reminder that, anything could happen. That's why I wanted you Oliver to know that." Laurel paused once more, took a deep breath, then continued and said, "Which is why I need you and Sara to promise me something."

Oliver and Sara wondered what it was she wanted them to promise her, but they could see how much this was important to her and moved to sit on either side of her bed. Laurel then told them what she wanted them to promise her and made sure they understood what she wanted them to do. After listening to her request, they completely agreed to it and assured her they would fulfill it as soon as possible.

Soon afterwards, Laurel was hit with severe seizures and the doctors rushed into the room and scrambled to save her while Oliver, Sara, Quentin, and their team looked on in horror. Unknown to anyone, this was the work of Damien Darhk who so happened to have a mole in the hospital keeping him updated on Laurel's condition. When he learned that Laurel would recover, Darhk knew he couldn't allow that and, using his powers, caused her internal organs to fail. The doctors did their best but were unable to stop what was happening and she later died, causing everyone's emotions to go into a tailspin, stunned that this had happened and beside themselves with grief. Sara on her part was crying and wailing while Oliver stood shell shocked. Quentin on his part collapsed, feeling disbelief that something like this would happen to him yet again. Sara however continued wailing and wouldn't stop until Oliver, coming back to himself, gently led her out of the room and held her close, calming her down as the two of them cried into each other's arms and held each other close, mourning their loss.

The funeral was held two weeks later and everyone who knew Laurel and was close to her, including her and Sara's mother Donna, and Nyssa, were in attendance. After the service was concluded and the minister said what was needed, Oliver and Sara jointly gave the eulogy, each giving their own accounts on what they remembered about Laurel, how much she meant to them and how precious she was to them and to everyone who knew and loved her. They also revealed to everyone who weren't already aware of this that Laurel herself was the Black Canary, which came as a total shock to Donna, and told them that she put on the mask because she wanted to do more for the city than only by being the assistant district attorney. That's how much she loved and cared for Star City and its citizens and, as Oliver and Sara also pointed out, that's how big her heart was.

Barry later came, late since he'd been held up by Zoom and had lost his powers before recovering them, and Oliver told him that it was his responsibility to bring an end to the shadow of darkness that Darhk placed upon them and vowed to kill him. Afterwards he got into the limo in which Sara was waiting for him and with a hint of venom, she told him that they needed to kill Darhk as soon as possible, not just for Laurel, but also for the city and for all those closest to them.

Eventually the day would come when Darhk made his final moves to destroy the world and Oliver and Sara rallied their city together and gave them the hope they needed to defeat the villain and his destructive magic. In the ensuing and final battle, the couple was able to subdue Darhk and, with Sara holding onto him from behind, preventing him from moving, Oliver came forward and used one of his arrows to kill Darhk in the same way he had killed Laurel. Despite finally putting Darhk down for good, Oliver and Sara would still struggle with the grief and sadness over losing Laurel and it would take months for them to heal. But heal they did and were able to move forward with their lives, getting married in a beautiful wedding with their teammates, Team Flash, other heroes allied with them, and others who was a part of their lives in attendance, and eventually going on to have children of their own.

In addition, Oliver Queen and his wife, Sara Lance-Queen continued to honor Laurel's memory by continuing to protect and fight for their city as the Green Arrow and the White Canary. They truly did have a very bright future as Laurel had envisioned for them, and they would never forget her or what she had done for Star City and would tell their children many exciting stories about their aunt. Together, Oliver and Sara would keep the memory of Laurel close to them forever while Laurel, from where she was in the afterlife, continuously watched over them and made sure they would always remain happy and in love with each other for all time.

 **The End**

 **A/N And that's it my readers. I hope you all like this. In my opinion, I think this is how canon should've gone, including for Laurel's final moments. Regarding Darhk, I decided to add that as an explanation for the sudden reversal in Laurel's condition because come on. How was it that Laurel was fine one moment then suddenly experiences complications which lead to her death? I know I'm not experienced in medical issues and that unexpected things do happen, but it really makes no sense for Laurel. And considering the type of awful man Darhk was and the scope of his powers, I can see him doing something like that, especially considering the promise he made to Quentin regarding what would happen to Laurel if he defied him.**

 **Regarding what Laurel asked Oliver and Sara to promise her, I have no idea what it is since it's based on when she asked Oliver the same thing right before she died, but the executive producers and Stephen Amell have chosen to keep it a secret until next season. Because of that, I've decided to follow the same policy and keep her request shrouded in mystery instead of trying to make something up for her. When what she requested is revealed next season, that's when I will somehow incorporate it into this fic. If I forget to do this when next season airs, please PM and remind me.**

 **Have a wonderful day.**


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